Three-River Headwaters National Park Records Grade-II Protected Animal, the Saiga Antelope

Jiduo County Forest Public Security Bureau Provided Photo

Qinghai News Network · The Great Beauty of Qinghai Client News, February 13th, in the Da Senge Village, Colorful Township, Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, the national grade-II protected animal, Saiga antelope, was recorded. Currently, the saiga antelope in Jiduo County is still the first record, reflecting the significant achievements made in the protection of wild animal resources in the Three-River Headwaters National Park.

Saiga antelope, also known as Minglong sheep, belongs to the Bovidae family, a typical forest animal, and is one of the typical animals in the tropical and subtropical regions of Southeast Asia. It mainly lives in temperate and subtropical forests with an altitude of 1000 to 4400 meters, with mixed coniferous-broadleaf forests, coniferous forests, or shrubs with rocks. Its horns are not like deer, its hooves are not like cows, its head is not like sheep, and its tail is not like donkeys. Therefore, people call it 'Four Not Likings' together with (dūn lù, reindeer), (tuǒ lù, bactrian camel) and (mí lù, moose). Because it was first discovered in Indonesia's Sumatra, it is also called Saiga antelope. In some regions of Zhejiang Province, it is also called Sheep. Currently, it is mainly distributed in Gansu, Qinghai, Zhejiang, Anhui, Hubei, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Tibet, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Shaanxi and Southern Shaanxi, and it is a national grade-II protected animal in China.

According to relevant personnel, it is currently unknown how this saiga antelope appeared in Jiduo County. Jiduo County Forest Public Security Bureau is further investigating the situation. The appearance of the saiga antelope also reflects the continuous improvement of the ecological environment in the Three-River Headwaters region. We also call on everyone to start protecting wild plant and animal resources now.